It was great to be invited to Newcastle last week to attend the Transport for the North annual conference where the slogan ‘Transform the North’ was backed up by new figures showing a transformed North could unlock £118bn a year by 2050.
The event was designed as a way of bringing the region together to discuss what is needed to deliver a more prosperous North for residents, businesses, and visitors. As many of Ground Transport Media’s community are based in the North, we thought we would head along and check it out.
Alan and Leah represented our team and made the journey from their homes in Hertfordshire, to the city centre of Newcastle via public transport courtesy of the London North Eastern Railway.
They were keen to make sure the four key sectors Ground Transport Media represents (Chauffeur, Courier, Private Hire Vehicle and Taxi) were part of the conversation, which somewhat suprisingly, isn’t always the case!
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[Pictured – Alan (left) and Leah (right) from our team in the hotel lobby at the event]
During one of the breakout sessions we listened in on, one panelist said “We need a shift to more walking, cycling and using bus and rail”. The fact this statement does not include nor acknowledge Private Hire Vehicles or Taxis, clearly shows there is work to be done.
However, it’s not all bad news!
As we were in Newcastle, it was great to have the opportunity to sit down and chat to Councillor Martin Gannon, who is the leader of Gateshead Council, as well as the Chair of the North East Joint Transport Committee.
[Pictured above – Councillor Gannon (left), alongside Alan from our team (right)]
In an interview coming to GTM shortly, Martin described the Taxi trade as part of public transport, which is great to hear from a person of influence in the transportation sector like himself.
During the event, we had the chance to meet with the Shadow Transport Secretary Louise Haigh MP, who kindly promised us an exclusive interview to chat more about the concerns of the Chauffeur, Courier, Private Hire Vehicle and Taxi sectors.
Once we have a date in the diary, we will be reaching out to our community to ask you to provide your questions for Louise – so watch this space!
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[Pictured – Leah (left) from our team, alongside Shadow Transport Secretary Louise Haigh MP (right)]
At the event we also undertook a couple of exclusive interviews, including Alan interviewing Lord Patrick McLoughlin, as well as Leah sitting down with Martin Tugwell.
Both of these pieces are now live on this website and can be seen by clicking on the links below.
After a busy yet valuable day, it was time to make the dash to Newcastle Central Station and catch the train back down south again.
We would like to thank the organisers of the Transport for the North conference for inviting us along to their event and we hope to be back again next year!
